Bloomsbury Publishing has set up a joint venture with a Chinese state-owned peer, as the company behind Harry Potter makes a bet on the Asian giant despite its strict censorship rules.
The British company, which derives roughly two-thirds of its sales from overseas, told investors on Monday that it planned to invest roughly £250,000 in the partnership with China Youth Publishing Group and its subsidiary, Roaring Lion Media.
The joint venture, based in Beijing, will publish books from China but also license titles for the mainland Chinese market from Bloomsbury and other publishers. It will be run by Vafa Payman, managing director of Bloomsbury’s existing operation in China, which sells English-language books and licenses their translation.